Why did you choose Rice Business?

I chose Rice Business because I felt I would be supported in my MBA experience. I knew the stellar reputation, small class size, ample financial aid and focus on entrepreneurship would provide the foundation I needed to successfully launch the next chapter of my career. 

Image

What are you most proud of from your time at Rice Business?

I am proud of the fact that I will be one of the first alum to enter the Luxury Goods industry. I accomplished my main goal when entering business school which was to secure a product development internship and a full time offer at a beauty company in New York City. After an amazing summer internship, I will be moving to NYC following graduation to work for a leading company in the Luxury Goods sector as a Product Development Manager. I look forward to the opportunity to create a pipeline for future Owls who come after me that are interested in beauty, fashion and luxury goods, as that is an extremely underrepresented student demographic at Rice Business. I hope to encourage others to pursue more unconventional paths with your MBA. My MBA journey has led me to my dream opportunity, so I believe it is possible for other people as well. While there were times I felt somewhat isolated and misunderstood due to how unique my experience has been, ultimately I feel like a trail blazer and am extremely proud of what I have been able to accomplish throughout my time at Rice Business. 

How has your Rice helped you in your career?

My time at Rice Business has fueled my passion for business strategy and has helped me to recognize the broad applications of that skillset. Additionally, being from a top tier program like Rice has enabled me to have extremely meaningful conversations in my industry of interest. People are very receptive to students at top MBA programs so I am thankful to have the Rice name supporting me. 

What advice would you give prospective students who are considering an MBA?

Image

If you are interested in pursuing an MBA do your research, put in the work, and most importantly, believe in yourself. Even if you believe you have an unconventional professional background like myself (I was a hairstylist before business school), what matters most is you believing you belong in an MBA program, and how you communicate your belief that an MBA fits into your unique story. 

What do you think organizations should do better to build a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment?

I believe that diversity training is an extremely important first step for organizations. There must be a space to facilitate uncomfortable conversations. Additionally, inclusivity is the most important element of diversity, equity and inclusion. Without ensuring diverse members of an organization are included in an equitable manner, there is no point!

What suggestions do you have to work with allies within the workplace or at school?

Identifying and aligning around a common goal is always the best way to begin when working with others. Whether that goal be directly related to workplace tasks or related to ethical concerns, that must be the starting point for any fruitful collaboration.

Image

Owl Have You Know

Season 2, Episode 7

Sha Hornsby joins host David Droogleever to discuss her work at Rice Business, how to recruit top job candidates and the impact the Great Resignation has had on the working world.

Subscribe to Owl Have You Know on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Youtube or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.

Owl Have You Know

Season 2, Episode 6

Sean Self (Rice BA ’93, EMBA ’06) joins host Christine Dobbyn to discuss pivoting from being an employee to an entrepreneur, how Rice Business helped him on that journey and advice for budding entrepreneurs.

Subscribe to Owl Have You Know on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Youtube or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.

Jones School: Tell us a bit about your role here at Rice.

Prof. Lansford: Sure. I’m a faculty member in the accounting group. I teach courses to Rice MAcc, MBA and undergraduate students. I’m also the director of the Rice MAcc program. My MAcc director duties involve me working directly with prospective and current students in recruiting and admissions, job placement, and academic advising. I also get involved in MAcc alumni relations.

Jones School: What path led you to your current position?

Prof. Lansford: As often is the case, my career has taken some unexpected turns. My first faculty appointment was at Northwestern University, where I was an assistant professor. Then, in 2010, I left Northwestern to become the faculty director of Penn State University’s new graduate accounting program. I hadn’t planned to get into the administration of an academic program, but the regular interaction with students, employers, and alumni turned out to be something I enjoy. My faculty director role at Penn State, in turn, led me here to Rice in 2014, when the Jones School decided to re-launch Rice’s Master Accounting program and was looking for a faculty director.

Jones School: What do you like the most about your role as the director of the Rice MAcc program?

Prof. Lansford: I really appreciate getting to know all the MAcc students individually. It’s rewarding working with them and seeing how much they develop over the short 10 months that they are in the program, both in terms of their accounting knowledge and their readiness to enter into their accounting-based professional career.

Jones School: What do you think is the biggest benefit of being in the accounting profession?

Prof. Lansford: It’s got to be the life-long variety job opportunities. All organizations – for-profit companies, not-for-profit organizations, governmental organizations – need accountants, and they always will. Straight out of your graduate accounting degree program, you’ll have a variety of job opportunities. Most Rice MAcc graduates choose to start out in public accounting, but others go directly into consulting, banking, or corporate accounting jobs.

But, once you’ve worked in accounting for several years, your job opportunities expand even more. Unlike almost any other profession, the longer you've worked in accounting, the more versatile your skills are. That means you can use accounting as the foundation of a career that truly matches your personal interests and passion.

Jones School: What makes the Rice MAcc program unique?

Prof. Lansford: Well, two primary things: our class size and our students’ undergraduate majors. 

We intentionally designed our program to have a small class size. Our cohorts usually have between 25 and 40 students. And our MAcc curriculum is lockstep, meaning the Rice MAcc students take the same classes, at the same time, and with the same professors. We also integrate a good amount of group work into the courses. That structure leads to a comradery among the students. The faculty likewise get to know the students personally. 

The second thing is the variety of undergraduate degrees that our MAcc students have. Some of our students every year had been business and economics majors. But we also always have many students who majored in other disciples, such as music performance, engineering, statistics, psychology, or Spanish. This variety of educational backgrounds makes for a more engaging classroom environment for everyone. Whatever you may have majored in as an undergraduate, you can pair that with an accounting graduate degree and excel professionally.

Both of those aspects are unique and not found in most other graduate accounting programs.

Jones School:  As a final question, what advice would you give an applicant to the Rice MAcc?

Prof. Lansford: I’d say, be authentic in your application. In your application essay, we want to understand who you are, why you want to pursue a career in business, why accounting attracts you, and why Rice’s MAcc program is a good fit for you. Highlight your unique attributes, experiences, and activities.

Prof. Lansford teaches Financial Statement Analysis & Valuation in the MAcc program. You can learn more about Rice MAcc curriculum here.